Simplified English Discussion Prompts

Simplified English discussion prompts are here for ESL or other groups.

I created these simplified English discussion prompts to be used at the church I attend (First Baptist Church, Nanaimo). We started a pre-service class for English learners from other countries. I receive the sermon notes from the pastor a few days beforehand and create a discussion lesson using key vocabulary and key scripture verses. Students receive the lesson by email beforehand so they can pre-read and prepare for discussion. An hour before the service we meet and go over the lesson to give the learners a head-start on the sermon.

Ways to use the lessons

These simplified English discussion prompts are here for you to use. Please feel free to use these lessons. They can work as stand-alones, in a series, or along with the sermon either beforehand or afterwards. Sermons they go with can be found on YouTube at fbcnanaimo.

Depending on the type of group you lead, you may wish to pair students for discussion or interact with the group as a whole. I like to alternate between the two. If your group has mixed English levels, you could pair a higher-level student with a lower-level student from the same L1 (first language). The higher-level student can easily teach the lower one the meanings of words and phrases. This is more efficient and saves time, so you don’t have to explain everything to the whole group.

Here’s an easy-to-read Bible on Kindle: https://amzn.to/3KEChmX. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Get a Kindle e-reader here: https://amzn.to/3m8lsa0.